


Song of the Warriors

by Femalefonzie



Category: Class of the Titans
Genre: Afterlife, Comfort, Coming Out, Elysian Fields, Family Bonding, Family Feels, Gen, Implied Sexual Content, Narcissus is a good dude, Trans Achilles, Trans Archie, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-06-02 05:48:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19435177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Femalefonzie/pseuds/Femalefonzie
Summary: With no one left to turn to for advice on a matter of great importance, Archie makes the journey to the Elysian Fields to speak with his long dead ancestor Achilles, and learns that the two have more in common than he originally believed.





	Song of the Warriors

**Author's Note:**

> We were covering The Iliad in one of my English classes this semester and I heard about the theory/interpretation that Achilles may have been a trans man. I always had this head canon that Archie from COTT was trans too so this came to be. 
> 
> Enjoy!

A series of bad, awkward decisions lead to this moment but he had come this far and there was no way that Archie was backing down now. He raised his hand and knocked against the solid oak door before him. He could hear muffled voices coming from the other side, the sound of footsteps, and the door opened. Standing on the other side was a man he had never seen before. The man, someone in his late twenties and towering over the 15-year-old, seemed equally surprised to see some scrawny kid in strange clothes far too big for him standing on his doorstep. And then he saw Narcissus standing behind the boy and that seemed to answer his confusion. Narcissus, ever the ball of eternal sunshine, smiled and waved, “Hey Patroclus! Is the big guy home?”

Patroclus? Archie knew that name from somewhere but at the moment it was escaping him. Patroclus, to his credit, left the boy in his confusion and addressed his friend. “That he is. May I ask what this is about?”

“This is Archie. He’s one of the seven,” Narcissus explained, “ Achilles ’ one of the seven. And he’s here to have a word with him. I was just showing him the way.”

Patroclus looked back down at the boy standing before him and Archie had the strongest urge to just turn around and call the whole thing off. It wasn’t that Patroclus was necessarily glaring at him or doing anything to intimidate Archie in anyway, but the reason for his journey to the underworld was unsettling enough already and Archie didn’t need another person present for this conversation to add to his uncomfortableness. Patroclus looked the boy over, taking in his features, before smiling and stepping back so that Archie could step inside, “Come on in Son.” 

There was no backing down now. Archie turned back and gave thanks to Narcissus, then crossed the threshold into the house. Behind him, Patroclus shut and locked the door.

~~~

Life before New Olympus was nothing. Archie wasn’t being dramatic and hyperbolic here, he literally had nothing before moving into the brownstone and joining up with the seven. He never knew his parents. One time when he was seven and curious he’d broken into his social worker’s file cabinet during one of their meetings and took his file. He wasn’t looking for much, a name or date, some clue of who he was, but his information was limited. From what he’d pieced together from his own research and tricking the information from his social workers and foster families, he had a father at one point. Archie didn’t remember him but there had been an old, glossy photo paper clipped in one of his older files that he had taken the liberty of stealing. It was the only photo that seemingly existed of his father, and of his old life. The photo was of a man, young, maybe in his early twenties holding an infant swaddled in a purple blanket and grinning. Though there was no name on the back Archie knew it was his father holding him; they had the same nose. The one, he would later learn, they inherited from Achilles. He asked his social worker once what his father’s name was and what happened to him for his only child to end up in foster-care. Archie got a name and nothing else; James Cross. His father was James Cross; a ghost, a phantom of reality, with the only things proving that he actually ever existed being a name and a child. Archie asked about his mom, only once, and got nothing in return. Even after locating a copy of his birth certificate the only name listed was James Cross. His mom’s name, somehow, was blank. A blank space underneath a name that had always seemed foreign to the boy, across from the name James Cross and a date that had previously held no meaning to him. After moving to New Olympus, his friends asked him about his birthday and Archie gave them the date listed: April 9th. That year was the first time Archie had celebrated a proper birthday and he wasn’t even a hundred percent certain that was the real date. 

He bounced around before New Olympus between foster families and group homes, wherever his social worker could fit him. He had a habit of pissing people off and ending up in a new place every other week. Later, when he was older and wiser, Archie understood his aggression more and more. No kid liked to be in the system, and no kid liked to be in the system under a name and identity that didn’t make sense. The drastic change from that to New Olympus where everyone called him by the right name and pronouns was almost like experiencing culture shock. Then again, that could have been easily attributed to no one knowing that Archie was trans. 

And why should they? Archie loves his friends dearly but his personal business was his business and the others did not need to know. But did he  want them to know? Would it make any difference if he came out? It would definitely better than them finding out and questioning him. But they weren’t exactly the questioning type. When some dude who looked like a Hemsworth clone came knocking on their front door a few weeks back looking for Neil, and the model left with him on a date, no one said anything. But then again that was Neil. Neil wasn’t what one would consider a normal person or hold to the standards of everyone else. And then there was Atlanta. What would she think? 

As far as Archie could tell the only ones who knew where the gods. When Hermes had picked him up and first introduced him to Hera they both used the wrong name. Archie corrected them (and looking back he was ruder about it than he could have been) but afterwards their expressions softened and it had been strictly Archie after that. No mistakes. No accidents. Just Archie. Hell, even Ares, the biggest hothead on Olympus, has taken the time to ensure he got Archie’s name and pronouns right. With him there hadn’t even been a first mistake. The god of war only knew him as Archie and the Teen was thankful for that. 

Archie couldn’t go to Ares to solve his problems though. Ares read as more of a sports coach than a guidance counsellor, though there had been moments when the line blurred a bit. One day, Archie had been training with a spear when Ares entered the room and went completely still; frozen in place, like he’d seen a ghost.

“Ares?” Archie had asked. “What’s wrong?”

And the God of War replied, “You look so much like him.” Afterwards he straightened himself up, forced his normal stoicism to return and ran Archie through drills. Archie didn’t need to ask who him was. His ancestor and the god of war had been friends. He’d heard stories, some through poetry and others through the gods themselves, and he knew that on the day Achilles died Ares wept. A lot of the gods had cried the day his ancestor was struck down. It was weird to think about. Coming from having no one and nothing to being related to one of the most important figures in Greek mythology. And that was when Archie realized that he wasn’t completely alone anymore; he did have one blood relative that he could talk to. 

He waited until it was a school day to do it. While everyone was in a rush to get to class, he packed his backpack full of snacks and offerings, and snuck off on his own. He took the time to send out a quick text to the others that he was going to be missing class today, and not to worry, and that he would let them know if anything came up, and entered the hidden part of the school. It was nearing the end of fall so if this was going to happen, it had to happen now. In a few weeks Persephone would be going to stay with Hades for the winter. 

Archie found the goddess in her room tending to some of her plants. He hovered in the doorway, waiting for her to notice him. “You can come in Archie,” She called out without even turning to face the teen. “Aren’t you supposed to be in school right now?”

“I need to speak with Achilles,” Archie replied. “It’s a...family matter.”

“You wish to travel to the Elysian Fields by yourself?” Persephone asked. She had to think about it for a minute and pursed her lips together. In the past she had been strict about who had access to the underworld but that was long ago. The team had been there in the meantime, learned how to navigate the unusual terrain. The goddess nodded after mulling it over, “Very well. I suppose I could arrange something between Charon, get him to escort you over, but you can’t stay for too long. I’ll come and get you myself when it’s time to leave.” 

“I would appreciate that very much Persephone, thank you.” 

Persephone didn’t ask questions when it came to the kids and Archie came to appreciate that. She understood that kids were kids and that they were going to get into some shenanigans when their parental guardians’ backs were turned. How many times in her youth did she sneak away into the underworld to meet her husband? How many times did she go behind her own mother’s back? She went and cleared her door to the underworld and gestured for Archie to follow her, “I trust your phone is charged?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Good. I’ll message you when I’m on my way. Charon can take you as far as the shores of Elysian Fields but you’ll have to find Achilles on your own.”

“Can do.” 

“May I ask what this is about?”

“Like I said,” Archie replied with a shrug. “Family stuff.” 

~~~

Charon didn’t talk. Normally Archie would appreciate the silence but now it just creeped him out during their entire voyage over to the island. The Elysian Fields...it was beautiful and stood out as the sole patch of green in an otherwise red and violet landscape. He’d only been there once before, with the others, and then they stuck close to the shoreline. Now he would be forced to go inland. The closer they got to the island the more Archie was able to make out. They passed a few familiar figures sparring or lazing around the river; Archie saw Odysseus sparring against Jason and Atalanta running laps along the shore, but no sign of Odysseus. They landed not far from the heroes and Archie unzipped his bag, pulling out a snack size baggie of chips and offering them to Charon, “Thanks.”

The creature happily accepted the token and Archie exited the boat. He didn’t know how long exactly this was all going to take so he’d brought enough snacks to keep him satisfied for a while. Rule number one of the underworld: don’t eat anything grown or made below. That was how Persephone was able to justify her marriage to her mother and while being married to a god wasn’t the worst thing one could aspire to be, Archie didn’t quite feel like gold-digging was what he desired most at this time in his life. Plus with Hades already married that would mean he’d end up with Charon or Thanatos and self-confidence issues aside he knew he could do better. Charon waved the boy off before turning to resume his duties, leaving Archie to find his own way. The teen sighed to himself, adjusted his backpack, and starting walking in the direction of the amphitheater. Achilles had been hanging out there with some of the other heroes the first time they had met, so there was a chance he’d be lurking around over there again. 

Elysian Fields seemed strangely empty today, and quiet. As Archie walked along the trial leading further and further into the island the only sound he could hear was the soft running water from the stream that sliced through the land. He had been walking for nearly fifteen minutes before finally spotting another person ahead in the distance. A blonde man was lounging on a granite slab in the sun, one hand dangling lazily over the side, the other resting across his chest. Though Archie hadn’t spoken a word to the man when they had met, the teen could recognize him anywhere. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree. 

Archie wasn’t planning on saying anything to him, just keep walking and hope to run into Achilles later, when Narcissus noticed him coming up the path. The golden man sat up and offered the teen a friendly wave, “Good morning! Archie wasn’t it?”

Narcissus remembered his name? Huh. That was unexpected. Archie stopped and returned the wave, “Hello.” What was he supposed to say to his friend’s dead ancestor? “How are you Narcissus?”

“Dead.” The golden hero replied with a bluntness Archie had not been expecting. “But other than that I’m well. And you?”

“I’m doing okay.” As okay as a fifteen year old child soldier fighting an immortal being along with six other child warriors could be. “Listen, have you seen Achilles today? I need to speak with him. Privately.”

“Achilles.” Narcissus repeated thinking over where he had seen the other man last. He hadn’t seen him that morning. “I believe Achilles is still at home. I can take you there if you like?”

“Home?”

“You didn’t think we spent all our time lazing around in the field did you?” Narcissus asked and suddenly Archie felt very stupid. Yeah this was the afterlife but it was also the Greek version of heaven. Anything anyone could ever wish for would fall right into their hands, along with private accommodations. Looking back at some of the things their ancestors got up to in their youth, privacy in the afterlife was a must. Sometimes the warrior wondered if his fellow titans knew the...shenanigans their ancestors got up to. They had to know the basics but if Odie really knew all that Odysseus got up to with Circe and Calypso and so many others something told Archie that he would have a hard time facing the rest of the team. “The Elysian Fields is like a nation of immortals. We have days and nights, we get tired and hungry, and as such we have facilities built to accommodate us.”

“Oh.” Archie should have figured it out sooner but there was nothin he could do about that now. He kept his hands buried in the pockets of his hoodie and shifted awkwardly. “That’s pretty cool. So you guys live around here?”

“Some of us do.” Narcissus explained hopping down from his slab. He wrapped an arm around the teen’s shoulders in what was entirely intended to be an outgoing gesture but still made Archie feel uncomfortable enough to wriggle his way free from the dead man’s hold as soon as he touched him. Narcissus didn’t seem to mind. “I, myself, live a little further north with most of the other hunters. The heroes of Troy, a few parties excluding, prefer to lump those who didn’t serve off to the sides. Not that I’m complaining. There’s a lovely meadow near my place where I go hunting with Atalanta and Meleger.”

“I see.” He forgot sometimes (most of the time) that Narcissus was a hunter and actually did things other than stand around and look pretty like his descendant. In a way Archie felt sorry for Narcissus. Echo couldn’t ask him out in any straight forward way, her advances went right over the handsome hunter’s head, and he ends up being spellbound into wasting away, so lovestruck with his own reflection that he could not move. Well, that was the version of the myth Archie heard. The gods tended to flip flop over their mythology. Still Archie gave this version the most weight because otherwise why would they let some airhead who fell in love with himself into the Elysian Fields and be considered a hero? “So you can hunt down here?”

“You can hunt, you can watch tv, you can swim in the river that runs through here, just about anything you want to do you can do. Not a bad deal huh?”

“Not bad at all.” Though how he would spend his time once he was dead was not something Archie wanted to be thinking about at the moment. The teen gestured towards the path he had been following, “Lead the way.”

~~~

Narcissus was a bit of a talker. Archie would chalk it up to his trademark personality coupled with a lack of people to speak with over the centuries. To be fair though it wasn’t entirely about the hunter himself. He told Archie about his favorite game to hunt, about prowling the forests of Greece with his father during his youth, about his friends, his family, and all the drama he heard through the grapevine. Archie listened, albeit absentmindedly, and paid a little more attention to the later. By the time they had made it to the small stretch of land between the roaring fields and a small neighbourhood of houses Archie knew all about the ongoing feud between Medea & Jason over who got the good toaster in their separation agreement (apparently they’d gotten back together around 1746, split again in 1972, and were still attempting to divide their assets), Odysseus’s involvement in a paternity suit and subsequent banishment by his wife Penelope to the hammock outside, and Orpheus’ upcoming hearing before Hades about the appropriate volume levels after midnight on weekends. Archie had no idea how any of this information could help him in the fight against Cronus but it passed the time and gave the teen an unexpected look into the afterlives of some of Greece’s greatest heroes. Eventually Narcissus lead him down a small side road filled with a couple houses of various architectural styles. They passed a modern-style mansion, a Tudor, and rustico looking log cabin, stopping at a Victorian manor at the very end of the road. The three story manor sat in the middle of a decent sized piece of property surrounded by a wrought-iron fence. Looking between the bars Archie could see a small lake in the backyard, along with an ancient looking oak tree that would have been perfect for climbing. Narcissus found the gate leading up to the house and held it open for the teen, “This is Achilles’ space here.” He explained. “Don’t tell him this but I think the guy has a flare for the dramatic. Gothic style architecture is so 1890s.”

“You’re not wrong.” Archie replied. He looked back up at the manor looking before him and his thoughts wandered back to the man he’d come all this way to see. The mighty Achilles, champion of the Acheans, the greatest warrior to ever live, and here was some pipsqueak teenager asking him for advice on friends and family. Archie couldn’t help but shiver at the thought. If this went wrong he was never going to hear the end of it nor would he ever receive any closure. 

Seeing the kid hesitate to enter the yard, Narcissus cocked an eyebrow and stepped closer, gently placing his hand on the teen’s shoulder. “What’s wrong?” He asked. It would take an idiot not to realize that the boy was growing anxious. 

“I Uh...” Narcissus wouldn’t understand. Worse yet Narcissus was a gossip. Archie shook Narcisssus’ hand away, turned back to the house and made his way up the front steps. He’d come this far, there was no turning back now. “Nothing. It’s nothing.”

~~~~

Patroclus lead Archie into a parlour and gestured for him to take a seat. The room was nice though it didn’t match up well with the decorative Victorian era style of the rest of the house. A large flatscreen tv was set up in one corner of the room along with a couple of video game counsels, while on the other end of the room there was a grand fireplace surrounded by two large oak bookcases stuffed with literary classics. A couple paintings of water related scenes (a beach, a waterfall, a thunderstorm) hung around the room. Patroclus gestured for him to sit and get comfortable and Archie took a seat on a large, plush emerald couch near the entertainment centre. “Thank you.” He said to Patroclus who just smiled and nodded in return before heading over to the doorway. A spiral staircase in the hallway lead to the upper levels of the house. They passed it while making their way into the room. The man leaned into hall and called upstairs, 

“Achilles! You have a visitor!”

Archie could hear someone moving across the old floorboards as they made their way over to the stairs and down to the main level. “If it’s Odysseus tell him I don’t know what happened to his bow and he wouldn’t always be loosing his stuff if he just-“ A familiar man appeared in the doorway to the parlour where Patroclus had taken to leaning against the frame. Archie knew him well. Though the man was fair of face with long, luxurious strawberry blonde hair, they had the same nose and the same messed up heel. If the way Achilles’ eyes lit up upon seeing the teen sitting in his living room we’re anything to go by he hadn’t been expecting to see his descendant there that morning. “Oh. Hello Archie.” 

“Hi.” Archie replied with a small wave, “Is Uh...is this a bad time?”

Achilles shook his head and took the seat next to his descendant on the couch. “No, not at all. I just wasn’t expecting you. Are the others here as well?”

“No...I Uh...I just had some stuff I needed to talk to you about. Specifically.”

“Me?” Achilles asked. Archie nodded and the champion of the Acheans turned to the other man still lingering in the doorway. “Patroclus, would you mind going and getting lunch?”

“Not at all.” Patroclus replied and disappeared into the hallway, presumably making his way towards the kitchen to fix something for them all to eat. 

Archie looked between where Patroclus had disappeared and the hero sitting next to him, “I don’t think I can eat anything in the underworld but I brought some-“ he started to explain but Achilles was able to silence him simply by holding up a hand,

“The rules that bind Persephone don’t apply to the Elysian Fields but I will not force you to eat.” Achilles told the teenage hero. “I just had the feeling that this would be a private conversation.” 

“Yes.” Archie agreed. “I wouldn’t be bugging you if I had someone else to talk to but...-its a long story.” 

He waited for Achilles to tell him to stop, to be interrupted and told to go home, but it never happened. Achilles gestured for his descendant to continue and Archie took the time to try and think of how to word what he wanted to say. “I love my friends, dearly, but there’s something that they don’t know about me. Something I think they should. And I’d rather have them hear it from me than learn about by themselves.” That seemed like a good enough jumping off point. Summarized the whole situation without giving too much away. “But what would they think? People...people aren’t always the best and if I lost them, any of them, I would die.”

“I see.” Achilles said, mulling his descendant’s words over and trying to think of a solution. Finally he asked, “Your friends and you...you’re all very close?”

“Extremely.”

“And you all love each other deeply?”

“Of course but-“

“Then they should have no reason to reject you on the basis of some small secret. And if they do then they’re not good friends are they?” It was a total parent response. The type Archie would expect to hear if he randomly turned on some Disney channel sitcom. The cheesy, ‘everything will work out’ type answer and coming from anyone else, he would have blown their advice off. Except this was Achilles. Achilles who tore a whole through the Trojan army, who fought the river God Scamander and won, who oozed power with every breath he breathed, with every word he said. If Achilles gave stereotypical advice then it had to be correct. Still...

Archie shrugged his shoulders and looked down at his feet. “I suppose. I’ve just had enough bad experiences because I’m trans that-“

“What is trans?” Achilles interrupted him and Archie felt the blood rush to his cheeks. When he looked back up his face was entirely red. He needed to be more careful with his words! Achilles was looking on, waiting for some sort of explanation, and Archie knew he had no choice but to supply him with one. The young hero sighed. Here goes nothing...

“Trans? Like...transsexual.” The teen began. Somehow his voice didn’t break under the weight of his words and he was able to continue. “You know...born female but identify as male. O-or born male but identify as female. Being the wrong sex-“

“There’s a word for it now?” Achilles interrupted his young descendant for a second time. The hero’s eyes were wide with astonishment, as if Archie had placed the holy grail in his hands and told him it held the key to immortal life. Achilles’ eyes darted back to the doorway and he excitedly shouted, “Patroclus! There’s a word for it now!”

There was a bang from the kitchen and if Archie had to guess he’d say Patroclus dropped a tray. Nothing shattered so he assumed it wasn’t glass. A millisecond later the dark haired man had reappeared in the doorway and was gripping onto the wall like some sort of lifeline. “Really? Is it...is it safe?” He asked. 

Achilles’ attention once again fell completely onto Archie. “Is it safe?” He asked, repeating his companion’s question. 

“Kinda.” Archie replied, his gaze moving between the two men who were hanging off his every word. “I mean there’s high violence rates but it’s definitely better than it used to be. For one thing people actually acknowledge that we exist.” 

“Incredible.” Patroclus mumbled. He stepped into the living room and took a seat near to the two relatives on a nearby chair, folding his hands together in his lap. “And there are many other people who identify that way? Who are trans as well?”

“Lots but-“ Archie groaned and buried his head in his hands. He hadn’t been planning on having this discussion when the idea of going to the underworld to speak with his ancestor first popped into his head. All he wanted was some answers, something he could say to make his friends  understand . “I just don’t know what to tell my friends!”

The room went silent. Achilles and Patroclus exchanged a knowing look and the champion of the Acheans inched slightly closer to his living relative. He put his hand on Archie’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. Something warm spread through Archie’s chest, a feeling he couldn’t quite place at first before realizing it was support. That strong hand on his shoulder, by a man who shared his blood and who had listened to his problems and offered his own words of wisdom, it reminded the boy that he was not entirely alone in all of this. He had  one family member left he could rely on. One who was there and willing to listen as long as Archie needed him to. Achilles has his back. “They’ll accept you.” The hero said without hesitation. The stories said that when the hero Achilles let out a scream in the heat of battle, Trojan soldiers dropped dead of fright, but to Archie in that moment the man’s voice was warm and comforting. Still it would not be within Archie’s nature not to respond with skepticism or sarcasm.

“How would you know?”

Achilles took his hand off Archie’s shoulder and stood up. Without saying a word to either his descendant or his companion, Achilles undid the mechanisms holding his breastplate in place and took the armour off. The warrior tossed it aside, not caring about the slight ding it made in the hardwood floor, and relaxed. Archie had never seen Achilles bare chested before. The last time they had visited his ancestor had been sparring with Jason prior to their arrival and as such his attire hadn’t been out of place. Achilles was no less impressive with his armour off. He was well built, sporting a very impressive six pack as a result of so many centuries of battle & training. Broad shouldered with a slim waist, his body covered in a patchwork of healed over scars from battles fought long ago, but there were two scars that seemed out of place. On Achilles’ chest, right below his pectorals, were two precise scars in the shape of lines. He had not gotten them in battle. To an oblivious observer, they would appear to be the result of some direct blow, but Archie knew better. He knew what those scars were and what they meant. But it couldn’t be...there was no way that Achilles, champion of the Acheans, was  like him . 

Archie was sure that his eyes were the sauce of saucers as he looked the scars over and tried to come up with an explanation. When he couldn’t make one up by himself Archie asked, “Wha-what? Where did you get those?”

Achilles placed his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest, proudly displaying the scars. “Amazons. It’s amazing the pain one can endure when they’re basically immortal.” 

Amazons? What did Amazons have to do with any of this? 

Sensing his descendant’s confusion Achilles continued, “Before we departed for Troy Odysseus brought me to the home of an older amazon lady he had become aquatinted with. She, whats the term, performed the surgery. We agreed it to be impractical to fight in a war with a 99.99% male army who hadn’t been home in 10 years with breasts.” Archie’s head snapped up at that and the colour drained from his face at what his ancestor was implying. He had read The Iliad. He knew what the Achean soldiers got up to in their spare time. Achilles sighed sadly and added, “I love my fellow soldiers but a lot of their actions were...regrettable.” 

“You’re...” Archie could hardly think straight. He remembered, suddenly, a story about Amazons removing their breasts to better serve on the fields of war. If Achilles, assisted by Odysseus & Patroclus, stopped by the home of an Amazon woman to have his breasts removed in order to go to Troy then that could only mean one thing. A grin appeared on the teenager’s face and he couldn’t help but laugh. Here he was thinking that Achilles’ advice was stereotypical dribble and yet the man had lived through his exact situation, if not worse! “You’re like me!”

Achilles, son of Peleus, champion of the Acheans, strongest warrior to ever walk the face of the earth, was a trans-man just like his descendant! His descendant...

“Wait! Wait! Wait! If you’re trans then where did Neoptolemus come from?” Archie asked. Neoptolemus, the son of Achilles, was also Archie’s ancestor but how did he come to be if Achilles truly was like his descendant? “Wasn’t he the son of you and Deidamia? If you’re trans then how did he...you know...come to be?”

Patroclus cleared his throat and looked away to avoid making any eye contact with either Achilles or Archie. Achilles, however, did not appear to be embarrassed by the personal question in the slightest. Instead he sighed upon being reminded of his dear, sweet friend. “Deidamia. What a peach. That woman was one of the best friends I ever had, she was willing to take the title of the mother of my son without question.” It had not been easy. Having a child so young, while he was supposed to be in hiding among a group of pure young women. There was something to be said about the type of person who lost their virginity and conceived a child during a festival promoting and honouring chastity & virginity but Achilles preferred not to think about the consequences of it. “When people started to ask about Neo, and I couldn’t find an answer that didn’t involve explaining my...change...she happily volunteered herself. The stories changed. Some painted her as a victim, others saw us as lovers, but she truly was one of the best friends I’ve ever known.”

“So Deidamia lied to protect you.” Archie said, “That’s really sweet of her.”

“It earned her a spot her among us.” Patroclus added. “Which reminds me, we need to have her over for dinner someday.” 

“But that still doesn’t explain where Neoptolemus came from.” Archie pointed out. “How I came to be here.” Not that he was looking for a sort of play-by-play or anything. Just an answer. 

To Archie’s surprise it was Patroclus who answered. The dark haired man sighed and leaned against the arm of his chair, “It’s amazing how long certain genes can last. Centuries and many descendants later and he still has your nose.”

Achilles smiled and crossed the room over to Patroclus’ chair. The other man, sensing what Achilles was about to do, moved back and allowed the champion of the Acheans to sit down on the arm of the chair. Achilles leaned over and caress the dark haired man’s cheek, starring deep into his gray-blue eyes. Patroclus hummed happily and relaxed against the other man’s touch. Achilles chuckled at this, “And your eyes.”

“Wait a minute...” Archie mumbled and scrambled up to his feet. “Wait a minute! You mean you...” 

He knew the name Patroclus sounded familiar and the young hero felt like such an idiot for not realizing it sooner! This man, this man who had Archie’s own eyes, had played such a critical role in The Iliad, and here was he was completely unaware of who exactly the dark haired man was! “Patroclus!...y-you were in the Trojan war! Yo-you fought against Hector and-“ Archie all but screamed, warning a couple chuckles from his ancestors at such a reaction. He should have realized it sooner. Archie may have had Achilles’ nose but he also had Patroclus’ eyes; genes from both warriors of Troy carried down through generations up until now, and here was Archie living in complete ignorance of one. “I’m sorry.”

Patroclus replied with an understanding smile, “It’s been thousands of years Son, I’ve made my peace with it.”

“I have not.” Achilles piped up. Patroclus gave him a warning glance and the champion of the Acheans simply rolled his eyes, “Don’t give me that look. I killed thousands out of grief and went on a rampage. That shit sticks with you.”

“I am better now though.” Patroclus reminded him though those words were considerably hollow given that both men were now dead. 

“So wait I...-There’s so much I want to ask you both.” Archie started to say but he couldn’t find the right words to express everything he wanted to say. “I don’t...Before I never knew much about my family. Or anything really. It’s nice to actually have people to talk to about it.” 

“Families are...messy to say this least. Especially this family. Have you met Mother yet? I’m surprised she isn’t hanging off you at every turn.” Achilles replied. 

“Mother?” Archie asked. With everything going on with Cronus he hadn’t done much research into his newfound ancestor’s family tree other than what he could remember from his early readings of The Iliad. 

“Thetis. His mother. The original smother mother.” Patroclus explained and Achilles gave the other man a playful shove. 

“That’s not fair. She was...overprotective. Not a smother.” 

“And she’s still alive?” Archie asked. 

“Well yeah. She’s a god.” 

“Holy shit...I have a _godly_ grandma?” That would have been nice to know about sooner. 

~~~

Archie could have spent an eternity sitting there speaking with Achilles & Patroclus, asking them questions, hearing stories of the Trojan war, but they were more interested in what he had to say. They asked the teen about school, about his friends, his hobbies, and Archie did his bet to answer them both honestly. Was this what it was like to have relatives you couldn’t see very often? Questions and answers into your personal life, along with stories of moments that stood out for one reason or another? If so then Archie enjoyed having relatives. Even if they were dead. Unfortunately it couldn’t last. He had to get back to school eventually or the rest of the team were going to start asking questions. 

He’d finally gotten his answers. That was all Archie had ever hoped for. Answers into his past as well as answers about his future. Achilles and Patroclus escorted him back the way he came along the path to meet with Charon along the River. Before boarding the ferry boat, Achilles had one further piece of advice for his descendant, “Look, I’m not the best at giving advice. I’m like the poster child for ‘live fast, die young’, but I do know one thing about families. They’re not always bound by blood. Your friends...they may be the family you’ve been searching for. Not us.” 

Patroclus added, “Though we’re always here too if you need us.” 

Archie left the underworld with the answers and advice he so craved, along with something he had no been expecting; a family. 

~~~~

There was a knock on Atlanta’s bedroom door. She never bothered to lock it and by now most of her teammates had learned that but still knocked out of a sense of respect for her privacy. There had been one time when Herry had forgotten to knock before entering the room and Atlanta had been changing into some sweats to go for a run. That had been the first and only time someone had entered her room without knocking. 

She had been sprawled out on her bed flipping between the pages of her history textbook and highlighting anything that seemed to be of note. Atlanta looked up when she heard the knock and called out, “Come in.”

The door creaked open and Archie entered the room. He took the time to shut the door behind him which could only mean that something big was about to go down. Atlanta had been friends with the guy long enough to know that Archie was a private person and that if he took the time to close people out of a conversation, it was going to be about something incredibly personal to him. The other teen had his hands deep in the pockets of his hoodie and shifted awkwardly in front of the door. Atlanta shut her book, leaving her highlighter between the pages she had been on, and sat up. “Hey Archie. Where’d you go this afternoon? We missed you at school.”

“I had a meeting.” Archie explained. Who that meeting was with, Atlanta didn’t ask. Odds were it was one of the Gods, most likely Ares, and if they needed to talk to Archie about something relating to the team as a whole whatever was discussed at this meeting would become public knowledge soon enough. And if it wasn’t relating to the team then it was none of her business. “Did I miss anything big?”

“Naw, nothing too big.” Atlanta replied with a slight wave of the hand. “Herry’s at wrestling practice and Neil finally landed a date with the Johanson twins. So, what went down at your ‘meeting’?”

“Just some family stuff,” Archie replied with a shrug. He took a couple steps over to the bed and sat down beside Atlanta, careful not to disturb her work. “...Did you know Patroclus and Achilles were/are lovers?”

“Yes. I read The Iliad.” Atlanta said. It had seemed like required reading after learning she was related to a Greek hero and would be receiving training from the gods. She knew that she, Odie, Jay, And Theresa had read the epic poem but no one really talked about the personal lives of their ancestors so she let the topic of interest go. It was an awkward concept to say the least. I mean, what kind of teenager wanted to read all about then discuss the Love lives of their ancestors that ultimately _resulted_ in  them ? “Is that all?”

“No.” Archie sighed and looked down at the floor. This would be easier if he didn’t have to make eye contact. “Atlanta, I have something to tell you but I’m...I’m scared of how you and the others will react. You’re my best friends, the closest thing I’ve ever had to a family, and the last thing I want to do is loose you.”

“It’s that big?” Atlanta asked. Archie didn’t look up. Oh yeah, it was _big_. Atlanta scooter closer to her friend and hesitated for a moment before placing her hands on Archie’s shoulders. “Whatever it is Arch, you can tell me. I promise I won’t get mad.”

Archie still didn’t look up though he was able to relax into Atlanta’s touch. Just like when they were in the heat of battle, she had his back. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, still trying to piece the words together to get out what he needed to say. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he spoke. “I’m not...I’m not like the rest of you. I’m sure you’ve noticed some things about me that don’t really line up with the rest.” He began. It wasn’t a bad beginning. Maybe he could have worked on it a bit more on the journey back from the Underworld. “I’m trans. I was uh...born a girl and I started to transition a few years ago.”

Atlanta didn’t say something right away. Archie dared to look back over his shoulder to see her face, to see how she had reacted. He had been expecting a lot of things, rage, confusion, shock, so what a relief it had been when he looked back to see her smiling at him. “ _Oh_.” Atlanta said softly. “That does make a lot of sense.”

“...well?”

“Well what?” Atlanta asked. Archie let out a low groan and shook his head. He knew that coming out was going to have some issues but he hadn’t been expecting this to be one of them. Atlanta just rolled her eyes, “It’s no big deal Archie. I don’t see you any differently.”

“Really?” The warrior teen asked. Yeah his friends were good people and he loved them but it would not be the first time he’d made the mistake of trusting someone who he shouldn’t have. It just would have hurt a hell of a lot more coming from Atlanta. “Thats a relief.”

“Yeah. I mean you’re still the same old dork as before.” The huntress teen replied and gave her companion a playful shove. Having had enough of her regular homework for the day, she pushed the book aside and jumped to her feet. She grabbed onto Archie’s hand and pulled him up off the bed and over towards the door, “Come on then! Let’s get going! Jay wants us to run some drills sometime today.” 


End file.
